This article first appeared in The Edge Financial Daily on February 4, 2020 - February 10, 2020

KUALA LUMPUR: Datin Seri Rosmah Mansor was a no-show on the first day of her corruption trial in the High Court here yesterday due to a “life-threatening” case of neck pain.

Her lawyer Datuk Jagjit Singh told High Court Judge Mohamed Zaini Mazlan that Rosmah, who is former prime minister Datuk Seri Najib Razak’s wife, was unfit to attend court proceedings due to neck pain.

She was diagnosed with cervical spondylosis, osteoarthritis for both knees, as well as chronic adrenal insufficiency after a medical check-up on Sunday, he said, adding that her condition could be life-threatening.

After apologising to the judge, he sought to adjourn the trial for a week.

Lead prosecution lawyer Datuk Seri Gopal Sri Ram objected to Jagjit’s request, calling it a last-ditch attempt to avoid attending court proceedings.

“We do not accept this medical report. If she was really unwell, she should have been examined last week. We see this as an act of bad faith.”

Sri Ram then questioned Rosmah’s diagnosis in the medical report.

“Cervical spondylosis, osteoarthritis for both knees? I suffer from that too.”

“You see her only problem is [that] she is experiencing an overdose of wealth and publicity. If she had informed of her illnesses earlier, I would have accepted it. She should have gone to a government hospital for the check-up,” Sri Ram, who also proposed to the court to revoke Rosmah’s bail, said.

After hearing Jagjit and Sri Ram’s arguments yesterday, the judge allowed yesterday and today’s sessions to be adjourned, and to start the trial at 10am tomorrow.

“If need be, I permit your client (Rosmah)to come to court in a wheelchair. We can also arrange for an adjournment from time to time, if she requires a break. However, trial will start this Wednesday,” the judge told Jagjit.

In 2018, she was charged with two counts of soliciting RM187.5 million for a solar power project involving rural schools in Sarawak worth RM1.25 billion and receiving a bribe of RM1.5 million involving the project.

In 2019, she was again charged for receiving RM5 million involving the same project.

Rosmah had purportedly received the money from Jepak Holdings Sdn Bhd managing director Saidi Abang Samsudin as a reward to help the company obtain the project to supply electricity to 396 rural schools in Sarawak.